How Abosom, the Lesser-Gods, Came into the World

We do not really mean, we do not really mean, (that what we are going to say is true).

THERE once was a certain woman; she bore eleven children; and every day when she got up and cooked food, the children ate it all. Their mother did not get any to eat. Now she pondered long, and went off to the plantation and informed the Silk-cotton tree, saying, “I shall send my eleven children to come beneath you here to pluck pumpkins; and when they come, pluck off eleven of your branches and kill those children of mine.” The Silk-cotton tree said, “I have heard, and I shall do it for you.” The mother set off and went home; she said to her children, “You must go to the plantation, beneath the Silk-cotton tree; there are pumpkins there, go and pick them and come (back).” The children set off. They went and reached the Silk-cotton tree. Number Eleven said, “Number One, stand still; Number Two, stand still; Number Three, stand still; Number Four, stand still; Number Five, stand still; Number Six, stand still; Number Seven, stand still; Number Eight, stand still; Number Nine, stand still; Number Ten, stand still; and I myself, Number Eleven, I have stood still.” Number Eleven then addressed them, saying, “Do you not know the sole reason why mother said we must go and pick pumpkins?” His brothers said, “No.” He said, “She has told this Silk-cotton tree, that when we go there, it must pluck branches and beat us; therefore all of you cut sticks, and throw them against this Silk-cotton tree.” They cut the sticks, and threw them against the Silk-cotton tree, pirn! pen! pirn pen! (was the sound they made). The Silk-cotton tree supposed that the children had come. He took off eleven of his branches, and let them fall to the ground. Little Number Eleven said, “You have seen, had we gone on there, the Silk-cotton tree would have killed us.” They picked up the pumpkins and took them to their mother. She cooked them; oh! at once the children had eaten (all). Their mother said, “Ah! as for this matter, I cannot bear it, so I shall take these children and give them to the Sky-god.” Next morning, when things became visible, she went and told the Sky-god all about it, saying, “Some children, to whom I have given birth, when I wish to eat, I can’t get something to eat (because they eat so fast and so much); hunger is killing me; therefore I implore you, let the children be brought and killed, so that I may get something to eat.” The Sky-god said, “Is that really the case?” The woman said, “I am speaking with a head, the inside of which is white.” The Sky-god picked out messengers, and they went and dug a large pit, in which they placed (broken) bottles; he went and fetched a snake and a leopard and put them in the pit, and covered it over. And now the messenger went to call the children. No sooner did they reach to where the pit lay, than Number Eleven said, “Number One, stand still; Number Two, stand still; Number Three, stand still; Number Four, stand still; Number Five, stand still; Number Six, stand still; Number Seven, stand still; Number Eight, stand still; Number Nine, stand still; Number Ten, stand still; and I myself, little Number Eleven, I have stood still; you must pass here; you must not pass there.” His brothers said, “Why, when a wide path lies there, must we pass through the bush?” Now, as they were going along, they had all carried clubs. Number Eleven said, “Throw one of these sticks upon this path.” They threw it down there, and it fell through (into the pit), yiridi (was the sound of its fall). Number Eleven said, “There you are, you see, had we passed there, we should all of us have died.” So they took a by-path and went off there to the Sky-god. The Sky-god had caused holes to be dug, (covered over,) and stools placed upon them, so that when the children came to sit on them, they would go and fall into the holes. The children arrived before the face of the Sky-god. The Sky-god said, “Stools are set there, you may go and be seated upon them.” Then Number Eleven said, “Who are we, that we should be able to sit on such very beautiful stools; so, Sire, we are going to sit aside here.” Thereupon the Sky-god gazed at the children; he said, “I shall send these children to Death’s village.” Next morning, when things became visible, he called the children; he said, “You must go to Death (who lives) yonder, and go and receive from him a golden pipe, a golden chewing-stick, a golden snuff-box, a golden whet-stone, and a golden fly-switch.” Number Eleven said, “You are our master, wherever you will send us, we shall go.” The Sky-god said, “Be off.” The children set out for Death’s village. They arrived there; Death said, “Why, when no one must ever come here, have you come here?” They replied, “We were roaming about and came here (quite by chance).” Death said, “Oh, all right then.” Now Death had ten children; with himself added, they made up eleven. When things began to disappear (i. e. at dark), Death divided up the children one by one and gave one to each of her children, while she herself and Number Eleven went to rest. When it was dark, then Death lit up her teeth (till they shone) red, that she might seize Number Eleven with them. Number Eleven said, “Death, I am not yet asleep.” Death said, “When will you be asleep?” Number Eleven said, “If you were to give a golden pipe to smoke a while, then I might fall asleep.” And Death fetched it for him. A little while after, Death again lit up her teeth, in order to go and seize Number Eleven with them. Number Eleven said, “Death, I am not yet asleep.” Death said, “When will you be asleep?” Number Eleven said, “If you were to bring me a golden snuff-box, I might go to sleep.” And Death brought it to him. Again, soon after, Death was going to seize Number Eleven. Number Eleven said, “I am not yet asleep.” Death said, “When will you be asleep?” Number Eleven said, “If you were to go and fetch a golden chewing-stick for me that I might chew it for a while, then I might fall asleep.” Death fetched it for him. A short time passed, and Death was about to seize him. Number Eleven said, “Grandmother, I am not yet asleep.” Death said, “Then, when will you be asleep?” Number Eleven said, “Grandmother, if you were to go and bring me a golden whet-stone, then I might sleep.” And Death went and brought it. Again, soon after, Death rose up once more. Number Eleven said, “Oh, Grandmother, I said I was not yet asleep.” Death said, “And what will be the day when you will be asleep? ’? Number Eleven said, “If you were to go and take a calabash full of holes and go and splash water in it, and boil some food for me to eat, then I might sleep.” Death lifted up a strainer and went off to the stream. When she splashed the water (into it), the holes in the strainer let it pass through. Now Number Eleven said to his brothers, “Rise up and flee away.” And they rose up and fled; and Number Eleven went and cut plantain stems, and placed them where his brothers had lain, and took cloths and covered them over. Now Death was at the stream; she was splashing water. Now Male Death called to Female Death, saying, “Ho there, Death.” She replied, “Adwo.” He said, “What are you doing?” She said, “Alas, is it not some small child whom I have got; when I am about to catch him, he says, ‘I am not yet asleep’; he has taken all my things, and now says I must take a strainer and splash water.” Male Death said, “Ah, are you a small child; now, if you pluck leaves and line the inside of the strainer, and then splash water, would it not be all right?” Female Death said, “Oh, how true.’ She plucked leaves, placed them inside, and splashed the water and went off. Number Eleven said, “Death, you have come already? Boil the food.” Death cooked the food; she lit up her teeth in order to kill Number Eleven’s brothers and cook them for food. When she went, she did not examine them (carefully), and she herself killed all her own ten children. Next day, very very early, when things became visible, Death rose up, and sat there by the fire. Number Eleven said, “Grandmother, a tsetse fly is sitting on your breast.” Death said, “Fetch the fly-switch which is lying there, and kill it for me.” Number Eleven said, “Good gracious me; a person of your consequence, when a tsetse fly settles on you, and a golden fly-switch lies there (you would use this old thing), let me fetch it and come and kill it.” Death said, “Go and fetch it from the room.” Number Eleven went and brought it. He purposely drove the fly away; he didn’t kill it. Number Eleven said, “Oh, to-day, where this tsetse fly will rest, there I shall rest with him.” Then Number Eleven went to the room and took his bag in which lay the golden pipe, and all the things. He said, “Grandmother Death, nothing will suffice save that I get the tsetse fly, put it in this bag, and bring it to you.’” Number Eleven set off, yiridi! yiridi! yiridi! He reached the end of the town; he said, “Ho, there, Grandmother Death, pardon my saying so, but if you were not a perfect fool, could I have relieved you of all your things; could my brothers with whom I came have found a way of escape; and could I have made you also kill all your ten children? As for me, I am going off.” Death said, ‘You, a child like this; wherever you rest, there I shall rest.” Number Eleven leaped off, yiridi! yiridi! yiridi! and Death, too, chased him. As Number Eleven was going, he overtook his brothers, and they were sitting on the path. They were making a bird-trap. Number Eleven said, “Have you not gone yet? Death is coming, so let us find some way to escape.” Now Death came up upon them. Number Eleven took medicine and poured it on his brothers, and they went on top of a silk-cotton tree. And Death stood at the foot of the Silk-cotton tree. She said, “Just here, I saw these children, and where have they gone?’ Number Eleven was sitting up above; he said to his brothers, “I am going to make water upon her.” His brothers said, “E, she is seeking us to catch us, and we have fled and come and sat here, and yet you say, ‘I am going to make water on her.’” Number Eleven would not listen, and he made water over Death. Death said, “Ah, here you are, to-day you have seen trouble.” Death said, “You, child, who are sitting up there, ‘Kyere-he-ne, Kyere-he-ne’.” Thereupon one of the children fell down. “Kyere-he-ne”, a second one fell down. Now there remained only Number Eleven. Death said, “Child, ‘kyere-he-ne’,” and Number Eleven leaped and descended on the ground, kirim! And Death, too, went on to the Silk-cotton tree. Number Eleven said, “You, great big woman, you too, ‘kyere-he-ne’.”?, And Death also came down, turn! she was dead. Number Eleven went and plucked medicine, rolled it between his palms, and sprinkled it on his brothers, and they rose up. Number Eleven was going to throw the medicine away, when some of it dropped on Death, and Death awoke. She said, “You have killed me, and you have also awakened me; to-day you and I will have a case.” Then they all started to run off at once, kiri! kiri! kiri! Now Death was chasing them. As they were going, there lay a big river in flood. When Number Eleven and his brothers reached it, they knew how to swim, and swam across. Number Eleven alone did not know how to swim. The children stood on the other side; they cried, and cried, and cried; their mouths became swollen up. As for Number Eleven, he turned into a stone. Death reached the river. She said, “Oh, these children, you stand there, let me get a stone to throw and hit their swollen mouths.’ Death, when she looked down, saw a stone was lying there; she picked it up and threw it; as the stone was travelling, it said, “Winds, take me and set me on the other side.” It alighted on the other side. Number Eleven said, “Here I am.” Death said, “Ah, this child! I have no further matter to talk to you about, but all I have to say to you is this: go and remain at home, and change into one of the lesser-gods, and if any one, whom I wish to take, comes to where you are, you will inform me; if I so desire, I will leave him and make you a present of him; but what I wish (in exchange) you must receive it for me.” (That is, offerings.) That is how Abosom (lesser-gods) came into the world. They are descended from the small child Number Eleven.

This, my story, which I have related, if it be sweet, (or) if it be not sweet, some you may take as true, and the rest you may praise me (for telling of it).